Two men died while in custody at Rikers Island within the span of a week, adding urgency to an already fraught debate over the future of New York City's troubled jail complex.
According to the city's Department of Correction, Barry Cozart, 39, was found unresponsive by a correction officer at the George R. Vierno Center on the morning of March 25. Staff performed CPR but were unable to revive him, and he was pronounced dead at 11:33 a.m. Cozart had been held at Rikers since November on charges including burglary, criminal trespass and petit larceny, and had pleaded not guilty while awaiting his next court date.
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